"Sometime towards the end of the 15th-century Ottoman potters started manufacturing blue-and-white ceramics of a technical standard unmatched in the Muslim world since the early thirteenth century pottery of Kashan," explains Julian Raby in his book Iznik, the Pottery of Ottoman Turkey (1989).

"The vessels, often of impressive size, had a hard, dense fritware body covered with a brilliant white slip, onto which were painted elaborate arabesques and floral scrolls in a rich cobalt which had depth and texture - the 'heap and piled' effect - of the first Yuan blue-and-white porcelains from China."

The bowl is particularly valued for its unusual design, which reflects the flamboyance of its creator. Using classic motifs, it also combines floral designs and cypress trees for the first time in Iznik pottery.